Khan, leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf party, told The Times that he would also like Britain to clarify its policy on drones.

AFP

He urged the public to engage in a debate on what he claimed was a form of extra-judicial killing that continues unchallenged despite outrage by human rights groups and the people who live in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas that stretch along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan.

He said: "Of drones I think two words — it's immoral and it's insane. Immoral because you cannot justify eliminating suspects, and insane because it's counterproductive.

"All it does is it turns more people against the US, hatred grows and the beneficiaries of this insanity are the militants."

Khan added: "This is a war crime and they never give the names of the people killed. It is too criminal to justify these acts, which are a violation of all humanitarian laws."